To the moderator – not a big deal, but seems like my post from 6:32 pm on May 13 disappeared in the merger of the two threads.
@Midwestmomofboys Sent you a PM
The young people I know whose squash or tennis got them into schools, competed nationally in high school. Their families flew around with them, often a parent and/or sibling. Is that what you are interested in?
If not, then he should do whatever sport he enjoys, that his friends do and so on- and depending on your finances, whatever is most affordable 
@momofthreeboys I agree kalamazoo is a great school. I was actually considering it, unfortunately you have to be a 2 star minimum and utr 9-10 as a senior to be considered as a recruit.
Also if anyone wants to see what d3 recruits look like at most top academic schools just check this out.
http://www.tennisrecruiting.net/article.asp?id=1953
Getting a star is very hard, 2 even harder, 3 even harder, 4 gives you d1 potential, 5 is scholarship at d1.
This year is even better, amherst has 3 5star level players.
@SeniorStruggling - can you play on a club or rec team where you are going? Also there are some great and important roles on a college tennis team for guys that don’t play, and can still sometimes practice with the team if they are a manager, or media helper, etc. True, it is hard to reach the levels required for many schools, and those three 5 stars at Amherst aren’t getting any athletic scholarship money since it is a DIII school, but a lot of players are just hoping their tennis level will help them get into some great schools these days. It’s not like DI is fully funded for the men anyway - there are only a handful of freshman players that actually get full tuition each year, since it is divided between the team and the older players who play #1 in lineup are typically the only ones to possibly get a full tuition scholarship. And that still just covers tuition, not a full ride, unless the schools does some fancy dancin’ which some do.
I do think the OP should go for tennis though, so he can be part of a team at high school if he can. I think it will be hard to keep up with squash with a busy HS schedule since it isn’t offered at school.
@CADREAMIN I am playing varsity, there is no club team at Earlham since it is a small school. Our recruits this year were nationally ranked international players(australia and uruguay) then me a nationally ranked player, then 1 guy who is very committed though not at our level, then a 6’4 kid who will be a role player in doubles(crazy athlete) then a kid who got in and is decent, though he probably won’t play(he was not recruited).
I know that the team may be cutting 4 spots for current guys who can’t compete. It costs money to have them on the team and sometimes it’s not worth it.
The spots for guys who don’t play are important, though they aren’t usually recruited. They end up being tennis lovers who go to the school.
The amherst guys wanted to be more near the top since at d1 they would never be competing for champiosnhips. they also have a better chance for a good education.
I play both sports, and here are my opinions of each:
Tennis:
NCAA sport. Total of about 700 programs around the US (Division 1-3). If you assume approx 3-4 spots per year at each school, this equates to 2100-2800 males and females who are recruited each year.
To get serious attention at the top schools for Tennis, you really need to be All-American and have a rank within the top 100 USTA within your age group. Going to Division 2 and 3 you can get away with all-state and all-region depending on what your GPA/SAT scores looks like.
A typical Tennis match involves a hard serve, followed by short set of rallies. Many rallies are determined by how hard you can hit it (with topspin). Most of the play is at the baseline, and involves deep hits to the opponent. Running between different sides of the baseline and short rallies are the norm. Rallies are much shorter because its far easier to hit it out than in a squash court (which is a closed box).
The USTA junior circuit involves 6 different levels of play - which counts towards national ranking. It is difficult to enter the national level tournaments without first doing well at the state or regional level.
Squash:
Not an NCAA sport, governed by the College Squash Association. So a lot of the NCAA rules regarding eligibility don’t apply. Total of about 35-40 CSA squash programs around the country. Assuming 3-4 spots per year, this equates to 105 - 160 kids per year who get recruited by a squash coach.
If you look at the list of squash schools you will see that most of them are Ivies, NESCAC or others with serious academic requirements. So on average, squash coaches tend to have quite high standards. For boys you will need to have a top 10 USQ ranking plus a solid GPA/SAT to be considered for recruitment. Girls is a bit easier, but having a top 20 ranking would be recommended. I overheard a squash coach at one of the Ivies talk to a player and he said that SAT scores of higher than 700 in math/reading/writing (total 2100) was competitive.
A typical squash match is much more physically demanding than tennis. Serves rarely outright win the point, and the rallies are much longer. A combination of finesse (drop-shots) and deep hard hitting can win points. The level of stamina and endurance required for squash is quite high. The racket is used to hit the ball flat (no spin) so the ball travels very fast. A lot of wrist action is used to increase pace (unlike Tennis). Because of this I find it very difficult to switch between Tennis and Squash, as I get confused with the wrist and swing. I’ve stuck to squash over the past few years. Although I’ve seen some kids switch back and forth between Tennis and Squash, the fundamental differences in swing would cause me concern. If your kid was considering both, I would strongly recommend to start him/her on squash first, learn the swing, and then try Tennis. Its easier to go from a Squash swing (more compact, wrist action) to tennis (large looping swing, fixed wrist) than the other way around. I’ve seen many good Tennis players get on the squash court and its very easy to beat them by simply hitting into the corners where they can’t take a big swing.
The USQ circuit involves 3 different levels (bronze, silver, gold) and has a high concentration of interest on the east coast (NY, Boston, Philly, Baltimore). There is a growing movement in the SF Bay area. Outside of these areas, squash is largely unknown. Lots of college coaches still recruit heavily in the commonwealth countries for top players (Egypt, Malaysia, S Africa, Australia). But in the last few years American kids have pulled equal to their counterparts across the globe.
Both sports are fun and can be played for a lifetime. Both sports would require a dedicated family, and the ability to train year round. You will also need to fly your kids around to compete in tournaments, as the USTA/USQ rankings are key to success in college recruiting. Best of luck
@sgopal2 I agree with everything above except that squash is more intense. Here in texas we play outdoors in 100+ degree heat. Last year at our biggest tournament we had multiple ambulances called because of heat exhaustion and full body cramps. It was also 100% humidity due to a tropical storm passing through.
I’ve never heard of squash players being rushed to a hospital after a 4 hour match in full body cramps and severely dehydrated.
@seniorstruggling: have you played both sports? I know dozens of my friends who play both and 100% agree that squash is a more strenuous game.
Playing anything outdoors in 100 degree heat without adequate rehydration is a recipe for disaster. I’m sure the same would happen if squash was played outdoors. There are a few outdoor squash courts by the way (NYC is planning one).
Squash was also named the #1 healthiest sport by Forbes magazine a while back. In terms of cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength and calories burned per hour, squash is at the top. Tennis doesn’t even make the top 10.
I was just reading through some of the posts here by @seniorstruggling and I’d like to clear up some misconceptions:
This may have been true about 5-10 years ago. But now virtually all squash spots are filled by kids who play the national circuit. It might be possible for a high caliber tennis play to fill a spot on a CLUB team at a university, there is no way I would see this happening at a varsity level. Squash has grown over 100% over the past 5 years.
I actually personally know a couple of the squash players who used to play at Hobart. To be honest though, Hobart is not that great on the college squash rankings. They take whoever they can get. At the top squash schools a tennis-only player wouldn’t stand a chance.
I agree that squash is less well known. But it is definitely not cheaper to compete. Rackets break more frequently than tennis (because of the tendency to scrape the side walls). I routinely break my racket 2-3x per year. Each racket costs about $200. Club membership is also expensive, which ranges from $100-$200 per month. Squash strings break frequently (costs $40 to restring each time). Then add on the fees for private lessons (approx $100 per hour), tournaments and travel, and the costs are high.
Tennis rackets rarely break, and the strings don’t break as frequently as the squash rackets. I imagine the lesson fees are similar, but the costs to join a tennis club are much cheaper. Tournament travel would also be similar.
twoinanddone, I don’t know about students in the south but I have been told that it is just as tough but in different ways.
But, yes, those good enough to be recruited for D1, D2 and D3 (most but not all) are nearly all students whose families have sacrificed a lot or who are very wealthy. Just keeping a few racquets strung is an expense–let alone travel to tournaments. Most US kids do not go to academies and home school, though that is a growing trend. The players I know played year around-averaging at least 2 or more hours a day. Even kids whose parents are coaches find it expensive–though their early development can be handled by the parent. Anyone trying to coach their own elite player knows the challenges though. And, as has been mentioned here, an added wrinkle is that even coaches at state schools are recruiting foreign players. Girls have a much better shot than boys. But I know of no players who got any funding who simply played on their high school team.
As noted by someone else, you can go to the Tennis Recruiting website and see the list of students committed to various schools. There is a “boy list” and “girl list” at the top of the page. Once you are on the list, you can click on any of the names and see their record. I think the overall record is free. You can see the number of tournaments they played- there is a link to their win/loss record for the last 4 years. You can also look at the students playing by year in school. The top 977 6th grade players are listed, for example. The top 1751 11th grade players are listed. The top junior at this moment is a player who lists having played in Little Mo’s in 2008, and has played since. That player has spent college tuition many times over.
I clicked on recruiting lists for schools that I rarely hear about and who most people have never heard of (Taylor, for example, an evangelical Christian college) and I see that there are a few players who were not brought up on USTA but that is very rare and not what most people mean when they ask about using sports as an entry to college.
Good info here. I cannot claim to be especially talented in either sport, but I have played a little competitive tennis as a youth but the HS season conflicted with other sports, so I did not pursue. I have also played some racquetball but only for recreation a few low-level league tourneys. Son played a year of HS squash in the NE. In Texas, the opportunity for matches was so low, he stopped playing.
I think that is the biggest difference. Squash is just not a big HS/college sport outside of the NE. Tennis is played everywhere and by people of all ages. Even racquetball is played more widely than squash.
As for playing at higher levels, a comment someone made earlier struck me. To get recruited in most sports nowadays, you cannot simply be a HS player. It has become a de facto rule that you must also pursue amateur/club participation as well. The over-specialization of sport in America of late saddens me. I truly enjoyed playing many different sports as a kid and I lament my kids not having a much chance as did I.
Play whatever you enjoy at whatever level you can handle.
“squash is a more strenuous game” – of course it is – tennis has become a game of beef and brawn with the person who serves the fastest/hardest having an unbelievable advantage. Squash is still much more a game of tactics, speed, intelligence and finesse.
Highest level tennis isn’t about who can hit the hardest. A lot of it is about conditioning.
The reason kids were passing out is because playing 4 hours non stop in 100+ degree heat is impossible to do while retaining water. The kids were both very committed to training, but very little people can train to last that long while doing school since this tournament is immideatly after school gets out.
Overall I put squash as harder than tennis, at the higher levels, tennis is definitely more streneous.
The issue with tennis is we play weekend tournaments, we play on average 110 minutes in early rounds and 190 minutes in later rounds, the tournaments last 2-3 days and can be 6 singles and 5-4 doubles for a good player.
I had one tournament where I played 1 match friday, 3 singles matches saturday and 2 doubles matches saturday followed by 2 singles matches sunday and 2 doubles matches sunday. I got 2nd in singles and 1st in doubles.
I was basically bed ridden for the next 2 days from dehydration and exhaustion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W2scDnfA1w
This is the video of a d3 recruit, look at the match play. He is moving to southwestern in georgetown texas so imagine this type of running in texas heat and that is a good chunk of what we do.
Yup, the heat, sun and wind are three key reasons my tennis-playing husband gave up tennis in favor of squash. Which also means, we pay thousands of dollars per year for his sport – a sport he could play for almost free at our city tennis leagues…
@seniorstruggling - I respectfully disagree. At almost all levels squash is a much more intense and physical game than tennis.
Here is an example of a typical squash rally at the high school level:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yRGiSZ09mw
A squash match lasts on average for 45-60 mins. At most tournaments, players have at least 4-5 matches over the course of 2-3 days. The breaks between games last only 90 seconds.
My son plays varsity squash for high school and decided to try out for the JV tennis team on a whim. He was laughing that all of the tennis players were gasping for air only after a couple of sets. The two squash players on the my son’s JV team easily lapped the tennis-only players during warmups and conditioning exercises. I suppose the varsity level tennis guys would have done better, but there really is no comparison in my mind.
@sgopal2 They don’t need heat endurance though. JV tennis really is a hobby, even highschool varsity tennis is a lower level than what 1000 kids on tennisrecruiting are capable of.
The biggest difference I see is variables, in texas tennis is definitely tougher to be good at. The winds feel like they’re coming out of a hair dryer. The physicality in hitting a shot in tennis is also much greater, and if your muscles aren’t strong enough they will start to cramp in later stages of summer tournaments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4PZyyzZMuo
At 5 minutes is point play, this 90+ times per match and 5 times in 2 days at most tournaments. Plus doubles which is more explosive.
The serve alone takes a huge toll on the legs and we have to train extra hard to keep them from cramping. It’s all explosive action.
Lot’s of misinformation on tennis here and inaccurate generalizations that imply only a basic knowledge of tennis. Not gonna unravel them all, but for example the cost comparison - a top college player carries 5-6 raquets and changes the strings after EVERY match and 2 hour practice - they are replacing way more strings and raquets than squash. Now ma and pa tennis player probably use the same strings and raquet for years, a competitive players would not. In the USTA system there are not state or regional championship categories, it is a national system with tournament levels, 1 (being the highest) to 5. At the local, called sectional levels, there are tournaments called challengers, opens, super series - their name varies by which of the 17 USTA sections they are in.The funny thing is about tennis - there is so much people do not know if they play at the rec level or only went to HS level. Two different worlds of tennis. At those basic levels (which is most people) they do not have the stamina or strategy and tennis IQ to really play the or analyze the game that a high level player has.
One could argue one or the other is more strenuous, but different aspects of each game has different aspect of that make it difficult…Squash plays 40 minutes with a light racquet, tennis matches can go 3-5 hours with heavier equipment. Unlike tennis, the back wall in squash often keeps the ball in play. Squash players have to be constantly on the move, but have to cover far less court than tennis players and for a much shorter time. Unlike tennis, squash players rarely rely on service points or aces to win crucial points. Serve is harder in tennis to return, walls slow down balls in squash, but both can deal with a 150mph ball. A tennis player who gets on a squash court for the first time will be able to keep a rally going, a squash player who gets on a tennis court would not be able to.
For the OP, I wouldn’t play a sport with limited access. Out west, raquetball was big 30 years ago but virtually all clubs tore down those courts and made their gyms bigger twenty-thirty years ago. I don’t believe squash is played much outside of the east coast and wouldn’t want to invest time and money in a sport that I can’t play cause of no facilities or players in the area - it is nice to play a sport you can do as you get older regardless of where you are. Tennis is everywhere, at parks and country/neighborhood clubs that are nice places to make connections, just like golf.
Finally, there is enough of a crossover in skills to change from one to the other – so you really can’t make a wrong choice. Enjoy - whatever you pick!